But, Bret. He did not move away from me, as Id thought he would at the reminder of my boyfriend. Brets a good person.
He is.
He loves me.
This has nothing to do with him Bethany.
But it does. I closed my eyes, unable to meet the stark beauty of his onyx eyes.
Ill tell him if you want.
My mouth dropped, shock and horror pounded through me. Thats not what I want, I blurted. It wasnt what I wanted at all. I didnt want Bret hurt; I didnt want him to know anything about this. It would be such a huge weight off my chest, such a giant burden taken from me to tell him about my infidelity. However, I was not going to hurt Bret simply to ease my conscious. But there was a part of me that wanted to let this out so badly that I almost wept at the joyous thought of it.
Then what do you want? Ill give you anything you ask for, just tell me. His voice was hoarse, raspy with its desire and need.
My throat ached with tears for him, for Bret. I didnt want to hurt Cade either, but I suddenly realized that I was. I dont know Cade. I dont even know what this is . I dont even know if were going to be alive tomorrow morning. I know that I dont want to hurt Bret, I just cant, he deserves better. We, all of us, are all that we have right now. We need each other. We have to trust each other in order to survive. Bret is a good guy, he loves me, and I dont want to betray his trust anymore than I already have.
He does love you. I had not expected Cade to say that he loved me too, there was no way that he could, but I hadnt expected such a nonchalant confirmation like the one he gave.
He deserves better.
Cade frowned at me. Then you?
I licked my lips nervously; my gaze darted anxiously toward the trees. He sighed softly as his fingers stroked over my face again. Yes, he deserves far better than me. Im so confused.
Im not. There is no better than you.
Before I could protest his statement he was kissing me again. His arms were around me and I was no longer confused, I suddenly knew where I belonged. It was the oddest, most bewildering, and most wonderful feeling I had ever experienced. How could I feel like this for someone I hardly knew? How could this feel so right and good, when it would only hurt people?
It was the sound of Cades name being called
that tore me away from him again. I blinked at him in surprise, barely registering the calls through the haze of pleasure enshrouding me. I was so ensnared in a cocoon of warmth and pleasure that thoughts were not properly coalescing in my brain, but Cade was swift to recover. My eyes widened in surprise as a thunderous expression crossed his face. I had never seen him look so angry and annoyed, but then I didnt really know him, not anymore. He cursed softly, released me swiftly, and stalked toward the forest as my name was called.
Jenna! he hissed. Jenna be quiet!
Where are you? Is Bethany with you? He glanced toward me, his eyes smoldered with anger. I stared at him in surprise, who was this person that was so undeniably angry over such a small thing? Cade!
Quiet! he hissed, but it was too late. I heard the loud snapping of underbrush at the same time he did. There was something coming, what it was I didnt know, but it couldnt be good. Nothing good had come out of the past couple of days; I didnt expect that to change now. I stared at Cade in horror, uncertain what to do. I wanted to bolt in a million different directions at once, but I didnt know which way was the safest one. Run Jenna!
Then Cade was in front of me, grasping hold of my arms as he pulled me toward the woods. Cade, I breathed.
Run Bethany. Run .
I had picked my way carefully through all of the thorns on my way to the stream, now I dove into them with reckless abandon. I was cut, scratched, bloodied and bruised, but I didnt care as I shoved my way through the trees and vegetation. I thought I should try to be quiet, try to go with a little more ease, but I was too terrified to slow down right now.
I could hear Cade behind me, and although we were both traveling through the same crap, I was certain that he was a thousand times quieter than me. My foot became entangled in a mess of briars, tripping me up. I cried out in surprise as I tumbled to the ground in an ungraceful. Thorns tore into my flesh, dug into my palms.
Cade grabbed hold of me, lifting me swiftly up. I turned to run again, but he held me back. Before I knew what was happening he was pushing me against a tree. Climb, he breathed in my ear.
I was moving swiftly, drawing on all the things I had learned as a child as I pulled myself up the tree. I glanced back at Cade; he was scurrying rapidly behind me as I moved higher and higher into the limbs of the giant oak. Then he was next to me, pressing me against the trunk of the tree. His breathing was loud in my ear; I could feel his heartbeat as he pressed flat against me.
Stay perfectly still.
That was easier said than done as every part of my body was trembling from fear and exertion. I was frightened of what was coming, afraid of the unknown, and consumed with terror for my brother and sister. Cade held me tighter, wrapping his arms around me as I bit into my bottom lip. I didnt know where Jenna had gone; I prayed that she was safe, that she had heard the approaching danger also.